Tall Order
by Encrypted Pseudonym
Summary: Axel and Lioness have both escaped onto the balcony to avoid Mr. Lee's party. It also gives them a chance at some alone time. How will Lioness deal with the whole thing afterwards? AxelxLioness.
1. The balcony

The whole idea came from Lioness wearing high heals hence the name 'Tall order'. I dunno it just seemed to fit. A very short, fluffy, stand alone scene in which Lioness and Axel have an almost romantic moment. The kind of awkward thing I always imagine their relationship being like. Lioness is too proud to admit she likes Axel and he's too stubborn to admit he likes her. Still sweet though.

Disclaimer - Do you think I would be posting stories on here if I could actually write for the series?

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Tall order.

It was a beautiful late summers evening. Although the Sun had long since set some of the heat of the day still lingered warming the air. Axel was out on the balcony, having escaped from yet another of Mr. Lee's insufferable parties. His elbows rested on the safety railing and he stared out into the darkened city watching as a silhouette as it passed a brightly lit window before the light winked out. Behind him the glow of the party spilt out onto the balcony, the light illuminating his back but throwing his face into shadow. He could faintly hear the buzz of conversation and a high pitched laugh from one of the women in the room.

Sighing Axel tugged at the ridiculous bow tie that had been knotted around his neck and let it fall loose. The glass door to the balcony slid open almost silently and a figure stepped out into the night, she closed the door behind her and then bent to undo the straps of her elegant high heels, grumbling as she pulled off first one, then the other.

"Stupid shoes, waste of time, I'll have blisters, my feet will ache for a week." Lioness complained straightening and letting the shoes dangle carelessly from her fingers. "I'm sorry, I thought I was alone," She apologised then her eyes widened as she recognised the boy watching her slightly amused. "Oh Axel it's only you, so this is where you've been hiding."

Axel suppressed the slight annoyance at the fact that Lioness had said 'only you' and smiled at her. "Yeah." He shrugged. "I just had to get away for a while, I'll never be able to mingle like Hawk."

"Tell me about it." Lioness said coming over to join the brunette at the railing. "I knew these shoes were a bad idea." She waved the sandals in his face then dropped her arm again. Axel chuckled remembering a time when she would never even have considered wearing the shoes she had clutched in hands. He had to admit she looked good in them though, when she had walked into the party this evening he had been too stunned to speak. The black cocktail dress hugged her body accentuating her curves and her hair had been up in an intricate clip.

"What?" Lioness asked. Axel ducked his head embarrassed, he'd been staring again. To hide the blush he turned back to the city landscape. Lioness came up beside him bringing her own arms up to rest on the metal bar. Their hands touched as she moved and a tingle shot up Axel's arm as her soft skin brushed against his fingers.

They stood for a long time, staring out into the darkness, a kind of comfortable silence had settled between them and Axel was only became aware of just how long they had been out there when Lioness shivered slightly. The air had cooled considerably and there was even a soft breeze blowing about them, lifting a few wisps of Lioness' hair.

"You're cold." Axel said, finally breaking the quiet.

"I'm fine." She insisted but there were goose bumps rising on her bare tanned arms.

"Here." Axel offered shrugging out of his jacket and offering it to her. Lioness raised a brow as if to say 'Oh please, this is so cliche.' the accepted the proffered coat draping it over her shoulders.

"If you want to get cold." She told him flippantly and Axel smiled.

"I..." He started, then paused, he wanted to take this moment alone to talk her, tell her how he felt, but he felt a pang of doubt, put off by her casual manner.

"Yes?" She asked, tilting her head back to look at his face. Her eyes were a rich honey colour.

"I just wanted to say." He managed, fighting the blush that threatened to rise up his cheeks. "I thought you looked really... beautiful tonight."

It was Lioness' turn to feel embarrassed and lowered her gaze studying the ground at her bare feet. "Thanks." She said quietly and they both went back to the city watching too shy to say anything more.

Except this time as they stood side by side they were a little closer than before, their arms touching from shoulder to wrist and their fingers entwined in a comforting handhold.

"Hey guys!" Hawk called as he slid open the door. The two of them jumped apart but Hawk didn't notice their sudden edginess as he almost tripped over the door frame. "You're missing all the fun!"

The two of them exchanged glances before following Hawk back into the building. Lioness handed Axel back his coat as they went

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	2. The crash mats

OK so I said this was a stand alone scene. I had nothing to occupy myself this evening and a lot of the reviews said they wanted more. I really honestly have no plans to take this any further and I don't want to give you false hope for more when I say you never know.

This chapter covers a bit more of what lioness felt about the encounter. I'm not so pleased with it, it doesn't flow very well. I have an excuse though, I say it's reflecting the disjointed nature of her thoughts. Truthfully its because I wrote it in half an hour after 11 at night. I'm sorry for any mistakes couldn't be bothered to read it through properly. Bad lazy writer.

Thank you all for the lovely reviews, they were muchly appreciated. Lets see if I can get as many for this chapter. Hint hint.

**Disclaimer:** You don't honestly believe I own A.T.O.M. Do you? No, I didn't think so.

**- imagine divider here -**

Lioness felt pretty confused. For the rest of the party she remained quiet and withdrawn lost in thought. On the way back she jumped into the slamma between Shark and Hawk to avoid sitting up front with Axel.

It wasn't that she didn't like him, in fact the encounter up on the balcony proved that she did. It was just that she'd never really been in a serious relationship before. It wasn't her thing, she was always just one of the guys.

For the next few days she was restless. The others seemed to realise this and stayed out of her way. She was grateful, but also annoyed because it meant she had nothing to get her mind off her dilemma. She was disappointed that Axel had avoided her too, she'd half hoped he come and try to talk to her.

Lioness wanted the reason for his avoidance to be because he was as shy and confused as she was. But she was desperately afraid it was because he regretted what little contact they'd had on the balcony. She sat up in bed with a frustrated and unladylike snort. It was late, past 11, but she couldn't sleep. Her mind was racing, she kept running over what had happened so she could figure out what she should do.

She slipped out of bed and changed quickly into her gym clothes. _Maybe if I tire myself out I'll be able to sleep easier._ She thought as she headed towards the area of the Aquarium where the teens had set up all the workout equipment. There was the weight training for King and a large space for sparring, the floor softened with crash mats.

It was this that Lioness stepped onto. She tied her hair back into a loose ponytail and sat down closing her eyes. She did a few breathing exercises, her chest rising and falling steadily as she cleared her mind of thought. Then when she felt more relaxed she stood and completed a set of stretches, limbering up.

Without warning she shot forward diving into a perfect shoulder roll and coming out to throw a few jabs at the empty air before her. She spun easily into a kick then twisted with cat like grace into a series of cartwheels and flips. She was pulled up short when she saw someone watching her.

He was standing by the wall bathed in the soft light of the full moon. His spiky brown hair was ruffled as though he had been lying in bed trying to sleep but failing. He was dressed in simple dark grey track pants and a white vest.

"Please, don't stop because of me." Axel said his voice loud in the silence that had descended between them. Lioness was still breathing heavily from the exertion she had put into her movements. There was a thin sheen of sweat on her brow and her cheeks were slightly flushed.

"No, I was done anyway." She answered not entirely truthfully. She made to walk past him but was stopped when he called her back.

"Lioness." It was almost a whisper, so soft she nearly didn't catch it. Turning back she faced him directly and looked into his eyes for the first time in days. What she saw there shocked her. There was the obvious discomfort at the awkward nature of the situation but also affection and hidden beneath that hurt that maybe she was rejecting him.

"I didn't make things uncomfortable did I? I want to assure you that it wasn't my intention. I just... Look if it'll help we can forget the whole thing ever..." He babbled quietly, dropping her gaze as a light blush dusted his cheeks.

Lioness smiled even though he couldn't see it. He was adorable and she didn't know why it had taken her so long to realise it. He cared about her, so what if things weren't exactly smooth like in the movies. They were teenagers, it wasn't supposed to be perfect, it was supposed to be about them.

She cut him off by leaning in for a soft kiss. His eyes widened for a second then his lips spread into a smile beneath hers as though he was coming to the same realisation. The kiss didn't last long and when they pulled apart the tension between them hadn't gone. But it had lessened.

Lioness blinked in surprise and jumped back as the light flickered on and Shark sauntered into the room wearing only his boxers. He seemed to be completely unaware of the moment that had just taken place between her and Axel as ambled past saying.

"Oops sorry dudes! Didn't mean to startle you but I totally needed a midnight snack. Want anything? I think we have cold pizza." The two of them shook their heads and shared one final look before they retreated back to their separate rooms.

**- imagine divider here-**

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